Corner lock for bedsteads



P 1934- H. RICHARDSON CORNER LOCK FOR BEDSTEADS Filed Feb. 26, 1931 5 Sheets-Sheet l lmy jfwimrdson Sept.- 4, 1934. H, RICHARDSON CORNER LOCK FOR BEDSTEADS Filed Feb. 26, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 1||I\ llll. lllllll Ill IIIIIIIIJ Ill llll llllllllllllllll S p 1934- H. RICHARDSON CORNERIJOCK FOR BEDSTEADS 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Feb. 26 1951 51/067125".- ifs/my fwhan'dflow, ,B cz u a, eymvad,

Patented Sept. 4, 1934 f. UNITED. ,sTATEs This invention relates to corner joints or looks for bedsteads, and its primary object is .to pro.-

vide a simple and improved corner joint for bedsteads having side rails. comprising a vertically -.5 disposed bar suitable for exposure as the sidev of a bedstead, and in which. an end edge of said bar is wedged against a bed. end, preferablyflush with the surface of the latter, by wedgingmeans' which may be entirely concealed from view when a bedstead is in service. I i

Thepresent corner joint; in its as herein shown and described, is composed solely of a pair of plates 'each having: a'portion formed with an. inclined rail-locking edge, one;

'0f said plates being secured to and projecting from a bed corner post, and the other of said plates being secured to theinner' side of-thevertically disposed learnt a side rail. The .bed corner construction herein shown and described is a simplification of and improve ment on the corner-jointdisclosed-in'rny Letters Patent No. 1,898,392, dated: Februarywzl;

1933, in which a vertical side bar and rail: wedging plate secured thereto, are both located on 2 one side of a vertically dispo'sedbracket plate,

stud and one of the said inclined edges are elimi nated, a vertical side bar andWedgihg-plate secured thereto'being respectively disposed on opposite sides of a bracket plate.

jointherein shown an end edgeof a woodenside bar is wedged against a bed end, said wedging being maintained against loss by shrinkage in the length of said bar, by means-includinga cooperative movement of said. bar and a wedging. plate thereon. The preferred form of..bracket' for a wooden bed end consists simply of a straight vertically disposed plate, an end extension. of which is secured to said bed end in th'e manner shown by the drawings. An L- -shaped bracket may be used on a wooden bed end but is neither.

necessary nor desirable,'this form of bracket being more suitable for metal bed ends having either square or round corner posts and ispreferably used for such ends. Other objects and attendantadvantages the invention will be apparent to persons familiar with devices of this character from the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein I have preferred forms 7 In the preferred forms of the present corner;

illustratedtwo slightly different embodiments of the principle. of theinvention, and in which-'- Fig.1]. is an inner side elevation of acorner postand end portion of a wooden bar or side rail ofa bedstead showing my improved lockapplied thereto and in assembled relation.

Fig. 2@is a. similar view but showing theco o'pera'tingparts of thelocking-device separated.

Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1. v

Fig.4 is atop plan .view of Fig. 2, with the corner'post andpost bracket in horizontalsec tion-on the line4 -4 of Fig. 2; and a Figs. 5, 6, -'7 and 8 are views corresponding wit Figs.-.-1,.2,'3 and 4, respectively, showing reversed positionsof the cooperating wedging elements on tlliet bracket side plate :and side rail wedging pae.-v Q

Fig. 9 isa view similar to Figs. 1 and 5, show ingan application of the invention to a round tubular metal corner post, the latter'appearing in section on the-line 9-9 0f.Fig.'11. ;Fig. .10 is a'vertical transverse section taken on the line 10'.10,of Fig.9. 7 i

- Fig. .11 is a top plan view, in section through the corner post, on .line 1111 of-Fig. 9, andshowingthe cooperating locking parts separated.

Referring first to Figs. 1 to 4 of the drawings, 10 designates. a rectangular wooden corner post or the corresponding portion of a wooden bed end, and 11. the deepwooden side rail equipped, as usual, on the inner side of itslower edge with a ledge, 12,;whichconstitutes the support fora bed. springer slats carrying said spring. The inner face of the post 10,: as shown in Fig. 4, is vertically mortised to receive a flat vertically projecting bracket side plate 13, which has a longitudinally-disposed end extension 13': firmly se-. cured to said post by'pins 14 entered into said post crosswise of the latter, the inner end or ends of .said pins 14 .being preferably covered and concealed by packings 1.5 of plastic wood or other filler material. g i

.A portion of. .the bracket plate 13 is extruded to form on its inner side a wedging member. or rib 16, having a continuous inner edge 16' which is downwardly inclined toward the post 10 for-a purpose v.laterexplained. "This extruded rib 16 is readily formed outof the metal of the bracket plate13 by a suitably shaped die or punch and is of substantial length; as shown.

To the inner side of the wooden side rail 11 is attached a metal member designated as a whole by .l'land consisting of a flat rail locking and wedging plate 18 onset from the inner. side of PATENT- E rail plates.

the side rail 11 to provide a recess for the side plate 13 and having an end extension 19 adapted to be securely attached to the side rail by a plurality of screws 20 of such length that, when screwed fully home, they will not pierce the outer or finished surface of the side rail, as clearly shown in Fig. 4. The rail locking member 18 is formed with a downwardly extending portion 21 havinganinclined edge 21 possessing the same inclination as the inner edge 16 of the rib 16. By reference to Fig. 1 it will be observed that the vertical edge of the metal member 17 next to the bed end lies slightly inwardly of the vertical end edge of the side rail, the purpose of this being to prevent the said edge of this member, when the latter is attached to the wooden side rail, interfering with the longitudinal movement of the side rail by means of whichthe wedgin'g of the vertical end edge of said rail is constantly maintained.

Byreferen'ce to Fig. 4 it will, be observed that the distance. of the locking and wedging plate 18 of the metal member 17 from the innersun face of the side rail 11 is substantially equal to the thickness of the bracket plate 13, beingsuch as will afford an easy sliding fit of the bracket plate 13 between the said plate 18 and said side rail, 11. The parts may be assembled by a direct downward movement of the side rail, the top edge of the bracket plate.13 being passed into the recess between said plate 18 and side'rail 11 and the rail lowered until the sliding contact of the inclined edge 21' of the downwardly extend-' ing portion 21 with the inclined edge 16. of the rib 16 tightly wedges the vertical end edge of the wooden side rail 11 against theopposed face of the wooden bed post 10, said sliding contact cooperating with a further movement of the wooden side rail 11. and wedging plate 18 thereon to maintain saidwedging against loss by shrinkage in'the length of said side rail. This prevents any angular looseness or play in a vertical plane between the. side rail and the post; and with the bracket plate held between the side rail' and the locking and wedging plate, manifestly. theside rail cannot swing horizontally. relatively to the bed end or become laterally displaced in either direction from the bracket plate.

By reference to Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive, it will be seen that the only structural. differences therein shown over the structure cf Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, is a reversalof-location of the wedging rib 16 and its cooperating downwardly extend-' ing portion 21 with relation to the bracket and In this case the rail lockingand wedging plate 18 of the metal plate 17 on the wooden side rail is formed on its outer side with an extruded rib lfi havin'g a continuous rear edge 16" downwardly inclined towards the post 10, said rib being directed toward the side rail 11,- as seen in Fig. 8, and the bracket plate 13 is formed toprovide the downwardly extending portion 21 having a continuous straight fiat inclined edge 21" that cooperates with the inclined edge 16" of the lug 16 The manner of assembling the parts of the construction shown by Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive is mani festly the same as that described in connection with Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive. In the last-mentioned structure the downwardly extending portion 21 being on the metal plate 17 secured to the wooden side rail, the bracket plate 13 offers a stronger resistance to disrupting strains and may be of lighter metal than when said downwardly extending portion is formed out. of the bracket plate,

I be equally as attractive in appearance as the customary sides of an all wooden bedstead. To efficiently wedge an end edge of the vertically disposed bar of a side rail against and in direct contact with the metal surface of a round tubular corner post, it is necessary for the latter to be formed with a flat surface to accommodate the said edge; and as shown by the drawings, the said surface has been provided by flattening a portion of said round metal post so that a recess is formed in the latter in such a manner that the punching of the two holes necessary to secure the bracket to said post and the said flattening maybe done by'the same operation. By reference to Fig. 9 it will be observed that the flattened surface of the post is of greater length thanthewidth of the contacting end of the bar 11, in order to permit the engagement and disengagement of the cooperating parts of the corner fastening. A fiat surface on a round tubular metal corner post is believed to be a novel feature in bed corner construction. A side rail may be entered into the recess'formed by said flatteningwithout being wedged against the surface of the recess, the use of the latter as a seat for the post-engaging portion of: a bracket on the bed end being alone valuable advantage of said recess. 1

v In Figs. 9, .10 and 11 I have illustrated an application of the corner joint, as shown in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, to a tubular metal corner post, thelatter being formed with a flattened portion for the ate tachment of the bracket and the abutment of the vertical end edge of the side rail. By means of a suitable die and punch, which may be combined in one, a portionof the wall of the tubular post ,22 is indented and flattened, as shown at 23, and holes are punched therein for the reception of rivets 24 by which the attaching limb 25 of an angle bracket is strongly secured to the post. The other limb 26 of the angle bracket projects to form abracket sideplate identicalgfunctionally with the bracket side plate 13 of Fig. 1, this bracket side plate being formed with the extruded rib 16 for cooperation with the downwardly extending portion 21 of the wedging plate l8-that is secured to the inner side of the deep wooden side rail 11, and said rib and downwardly extending portion cooperating to wedge the vertical end edge of the side rail against the flattened portion 23 ofthe post. Of course, the cooperating rib 16 and down- 1'25 wardly extending portion 21 may be reversed as to location in this construction, as is illustrated in Figs. 5 to. 8 inclusive; but such reversal being obvious, I have not deemed it necessary to further illustrate the same. The manner of assembling 1 0 is obviously the sameas that above described in connection with the previous figures.

' The cooperating inclined wedging means of the several forms of the invention illustrated in the drawings have been described and are shown as continuous inclined surfaces, but manifestlytwo or more separated surfaces tangent to an inclined line would be the equivalent, and may be employed within the scope of the invention. Other minor changes falling within the spirit and purview of I50 the appended claims may also be made in the constructions herein shown and described.

A commercially valuable feature of the present invention is that it supplies, at a very low cost of material and labor, a strong, practical and highly efiicient corner joint well suited in every respect for that type of beds having deep wooden or imitation wood side rails designed to fully conceal all metal parts of the corner joint or look.

I claim:

1. A bedstead corner fastening consisting solely of a bracket side plate having an extension adapted for attachment to a bed post, a wooden side bar disposed on the outer side of the side plate, and a second plate secured to the inner side of said bar and having a portion thereof adjacent the inner surface of the side plate, one of said plates being formed with a downwardly extending portion having an edge downwardly inclined toward the bed post, the other plate having an offset portion, a movement of the bar and said second plate cooperating with an engagement of the offset portion against the said inclined edge to effect and maintain a wedging of an end edge of said bar against the bed post.

2. A bed corner fastening consisting solely of a bracket side plate having an extension adapted for attachment to a bed post, a wooden sidebar disposed on the outer side of the side plate, and a second plate secured to the inner side of said bar and having a portion thereof adjacent the inner surface of the side plate, one of said plates being formed with a downwardly extending portion having an edge downwardly inclined toward the bed post, the other plate having an offset portion, the offset portion having an inclined edge engaged with the inclined edge of said downwardly extending portion and cooperating with a movement of the bar and said second plate to effect and maintain a wedging of an end edge of the bar against the bed post.

3. A corner joint for bedsteads comprising a bracket slde plate secured to and projecting from bed end having an arcuated hollow metal corner post, a bracket comprising a post flange adapted to be attached to said post and a side flange at one side of said post flange and at right angles thereto, and a side bar, a portion of the said post being flattened to constitute a recess adapted to accommodate a portion of said post flange seated against the surface of said recess, and cooperating rail locking means on the bracket member and side bar connecting the last-named parts to one another.

4. A corner joint for bedsteads comprising a bed end having an arcuated hollow metal corner post, a bracket comprising a side plate having an extension thereof secured to said post and a vertically disposed side bar, a portion of the said post being flattened to provide a recess for an end edge and end portion of said bar entered therein, and cooperating rail locking means on the side plate and side bar connecting said lastnamed parts to one another.

5. In a corner joint for bedsteads, the combination of a round hollow metal corner post having an indented flat surface, a bracket secured to and projecting from said post to provide a vertically disposed side plate, a side rail comprising a deep vertically disposed bar, and rail wedging means on said bar and side plate cooperating to wedge an end edge of said bar against and in contact with the indented flat surface of said round corner post, said flat surface being of greater length than the width of the contacting end of said bar.

6. In a corner joint for bedsteads, the combination of a round hollow metal bed corner post having an indented flat surface, a side rail comprising a deep vertically disposed bar, and cooperating coupling plates attached respectively to said corner post and the inner side of said bar; said coupling plates being provided with members having inclined surfaces brought into sliding contact with each other during the coupling operation, said inclined surfaces cooperating to tightly wedge an end edge of said bar against and in contact with the indented fiat surface of said corner post, said fiat surface being of greater length than the width of the contacting end of said bar.

'7. In a corner joint for bedsteads, the combination of a round hollow metal bed corner post having an indented flat surface, a bracket secured to and projecting from said post to constitute a side plate, a side rail comprising a deep vertically disposed bar equipped with a wedging plate spaced from said bar to provide a passageway for said side plate between said wedging plate and bar, each of said plates being provided with rail wedging means adapted to be brought into sliding engagement with one another by the entrance of said side plate within said passageway, the construction being such that said wedging plate has a freedom of movement toward said corner post whereby theengagement of said inclined wedging means wedges an end edge of said vertically disposed bar against and in contact with the indented flat surface of said corner post, said flat surface being of greater length than the width of the contacting end of said bar.

8. A bed corner joint, comprising a bed end, a

the bed end to constitute a side plate, a wooden side bar disposed on the outer side of the side plate, and a wedging plate directly attached to said bar and having an end portion thereof lying on the inner side of the side plate and spaced from the wooden bar a distance substantially equal to the thickness of the bracket side plate, one of said plates being formed with a downwardly extending portion having an inclined edge; the other plate being provided with a laterally projecting member which, by a sliding engagement with said inclined edge, wedges an end edge of said bar against the bed end, the length and position of the wedging plate being such that the end adjacent the bed end is free of all contacts in a direction longitudinally of the bed, said sliding engagement also cooperating with a movement of the said wedging plate and bar to provide compensation for shrinkage in the length of said side bar, whereby said wedging action is constantly maintained, and relative lateral angu- 

